History
Pre-Empire The roscovian plains were inhabited by two groups in pre-history: nomadic tribes which hunted the herds of cattle in the plains, and small villages in the foothills of the Taff mountains who cultivated small farms and kept goats. the mountains isolated the roscovian plains from the rest of the continent, and the difficulty of taming the cattle meant large-scale agriculture was slower to arise than in the east. however, once this technology was available, the goat-keeping tribes expanded down the rivers in the south towards the sea, creating larger and larger farms and small towns. as they did, many areas began to rely more on the rivers and fishing as well as trading up and down the river. The expansion pushed most of the cattle-hunting nomads farther north, and they were reduced over time to a tenth of their peak population. The riverine tribes unified into 5 distinct kingdoms, each controlling different parts of the the green river basin. Empire As the empire expanded over the continent, the Taff mountains posed a significant barrier to invasion, and the 5 kingdoms were able to organize significant resistance, more than in most areas. however, the empire was ultimately successful- although a lack of manpower and reduced morale, along with geographical separation from the core of the empire allowed the Roscovian plains more independence than other areas. For almost the entirety of it's time under the empire, the Roscovian plains remained stable and uneventful, and change was slow. however, in this period, the areas that were to become Salten and Rackten began to grow in population, and Rackten in particular become the largest city west of the Taff mountains, with a population of over 50,000. Kingdom of Ruskon After the empire fell, the region experienced significant turmoil, as did the rest of the continent. the southern roscovian plains and Rackten solidified into the kingdom of Ruskon, under Asparukh the first and later his sons, Asparukh the second and King Pliska. although the kingdon officially extended far into the northern roscovian plains, the seat of powerr was far to the south, and the still largely nomadic Chetians who lived there resented the rule. for some time, this was muffled by the fact that Ruskon controlled the largest city in the area, Salten, through which much trade flowed. However, the death of Asparukh the first and the succession of his son was enough for the city and the surrounding areas to organize significant resistance to Ruskon forces, and separatists took control of the city after two months of fighting. Ruskon Invasions of Salten After the local forces of Ruskon had been defeated or driven away ion the north, Asparukh the second decided to invade the area and attempt to suppress the rebels. the first Ruskon invasion was arguably a success, weakening the influence of the rebels and retaking control of the cities. Although there was a heightened imperial presence in the north afterwards, the separatists still held onto rural strongholds and continued attempts to break free of Ruskon. After Chetians set several fires in the Ruskan capitol of Rackten and made several assassination attempts on Asparukh, The king decided to once again invade, this time targeting the elusive Chetian stronghold and training ground of talaksa, a rebel encampment which regularly moved. while hunting the encampment and during a brief skirmish with Chetian forces, the king was struck by an arrow, knocking him off his horse and causing him to be trampled by the surrounding Calvary. The immediate victory of his death and the resulting confusion of Ruskan forces brought an abrupt end to the second invasion, as imperial forces were quickly brought home for the coronation of King Pliska, Asparukh the second's younger brother. within the year, Pliska was killed and usurped by political rivals, splitting Ruskon into multiple city-states, and ending any hope of occupying the north under a Ruskan banner. City-States Rackten, Ruskon's capital city, had been taken over by a council of religious leaders, and within a year had become a theocratic city-state. several other cities in the southern Roscovian plains attempted to exert similar power, but were stunted by their smaller populations and less strategic positions and ultimately fell into the political orbit of Rackten. in the north, Salten became an oligarchy, at first ruled by ex-separatist leaders and then the city's wealthy. both became regional powerhouses, as geography and circumstance led them to both become powerful for different reasons (see geography). Aside from diplomatic conflict, there have never been any Rackten-Salten wars, although relations have been strained at times. Bolton Invasion of Roscovian Plains East of the Taff mountains, the Holy Kingdom of Bolton was expanding. Having conquered the entire Nivas River basin just 2 years prior, a massive waterway covering a third of the sub-Olen continent, their focuses turned west. However, due to delays in mobilizing their army, Rackten and Salten had time to organize and band together, along with much of the Roscovian plains in resistance to Bolton forces. When Bolton finally invaded after 14 months of delays, they were met at 3 separate passes through the Taff mountains by combined Rackten and Salten armies. Despite this, the southernmost Bolton division managed to push through. however, The area they moved into had been evacuated and burned, leaving nothing to sustain the army. With their supply chains under heavy attack, they were forced to withdraw. Salten forces attempted a counterattack, but they too faced supply issues and retreated with minimal gains. having lost their significant advantage in numbers and morale, The Kingdom of Bolton changed course and began a highly successful campaign in the Kurlinths. Plague of Salten and the Open Heart Having grown significantly larger than Rackten, Salten was becoming the dominant force in the Roscovian plains. A bustling port and serious financial center, A common saying at the time was that the bankers in Salten had touched every coin for a hundred miles. However, the high population led to disease and illness, with huge slums making up almost a fifth of the city's footprint. It was not entirely unpredictable then, what happened next. A horrific plague hit the city, quickly killing hundreds of thousands. records are not clear, but it is estimated up to 65% of the population was killed, with most of the survivors fleeing. Fires broke out across the city, going mostly uncontrolled. within a month, Salten became a ghost town, with more than half it's buildings destroyed. in the confusion, a radical sect of the Church of the Open Heart took over the city, bringing thousands of loyal followers in with them, promising the power to cure the plague and take over the area. soon, the Open Heart attacked Rackten, claiming it's citizens to be infected as well, and that it had to take control of the city to cure them. Rackten's forces defended and won, and along with the remains of Salten's army and assorted mercenaries and fortune-seekers, drove the Open Heart out of Salten. Rackten took control of the city for several months as people rushed back in, driven by the allure of a fresh start in a lawless city. One business that grew particularly quickly and became powerful in the city was Pavlichenko arms, and it's founder, Nebbeth Pavlichenko, became one of the most powerful people in the city, as well as well connected with the Rackten ruling council. Unification However, it was an unstable and uncertain situation, made only more so as the quickly regrowing population of Salten made it both more powerful and resentful of it's control by Rackten. The solution, proposed by Pavlichenko, was to unify the two cities under a central government, and create a new ruling council of governors. The new nation officially adopted it's constitution 3 months later, and solidified it's borders an asserted control internally quickly. the Holy Roscovian Union is today still a new nation, and has yet to face serious challenge, but looks poised to prove itself when the opportunity arises.